Rabbinical judge who levelled Gaza homes 'breached ethics', Israeli state ombudsman concludes

An Israeli rabbinical judge has been criticised by a state ombudsman for violating "ethical guidelines" during Israel's war on Gaza, after bulldozing dozens of homes in the enclave and boasting that Palestinians' bodies were left on the streets to be eaten by feral animals.

Avraham Zarbiv, a judge in the occupied West Bank settlement of Ariel, was found to have breached a code of ethics over statements and media appearances in which he advocated the destruction of Gaza.

Live on air, the rabbi once boasted that "there are tens of thousands of dead [Palestinians]" and that "the dogs and the cats ate them because no one collected them".

Israel's war on Gaza has killed at least 71,000 Palestinians, with many more believed to be trapped under the rubble of destroyed apartment blocks and other buildings.

State ombudsman Ahser Kula wrote that "the soldier's uniform does not shed him of the robe of a rabbinic judge, nor of the ethical duties that continue to apply to him even during his military service", according to Haaretz.

Zarbiv, who spent hundreds of days on reserve duty in Gaza, shared videos of himself demolishing buildings with an Israeli army D9 bulldozer and appeared on Israel's Channel 14, boasting about his actions.

During the interview, Zarbiv was referred to as the Israeli rabbi who 'flattened' Jabalia, and said he had destroyed 50 buildings a week.

He also said Palestinians would have nothing to return to and warned against agreeing to a ceasefire deal.

Far-right Israelis have called for Gaza to be destroyed and depopulated, with Jewish settlers moving into the territory.

According to Haaretz, Zarbiv also engaged in political activity outside his reservist duty, including taking part in the pro-settler "Gaza - The Day After" conference.

He was also scheduled to lecture at a yeshiva under the title "To Zarbiv Gaza", though the event was later cancelled.

In January 2025, the Hind Rajab Foundation filed a legal complaint with the International Criminal Court calling for his arrest over comments it said violated the 1949 Geneva Conventions and the Rome Statute.

"It is imperative that Rabbi Avraham Zarbiv is apprehended and prosecuted without delay," the foundation said at the time, adding, "His actions, and the impunity that often shields perpetrators of such crimes, cannot go unchallenged."